Driving licence in Mauritius

A driving licence is a document that allows the bearer to drive a vehicle. The Traffic Branch of the Mauritius Police Force is the responsible body for issuing such documents as well as maintaining records of driving offences. Three forms of licences can be obtained: provisional licence, personal licence and international licence. All applicants must be physically fit for all applications.

Provisional driving licence

The age for applying for a provisional driving licence is 15 years for an auto cycle, 17 years for a motorcycle and 18 years for a motor car. Applications are made at the nearest police station in the locality free of charge (forms can also be downloaded from the government of Mauritius site at Govmu.org.

Documents needed to obtain a licence include:

birth certificates

IDs (or proof of identity for minors plus the Ids of the accompanying parents)

Marriage certificates for married women

Two recent passport size photographs

Those applying for an autocycle or motorcycle licence must first undergo the local traffic signs test.

Personal Driving Licence

In order to access the personal driving licence, the person must undergo the traffic signs test. The holder may then apply for a practical driving test at the Casernes police station for a fee of Rs500. Usually, the date of the test is acknowledged to be three months after the application date. Car arrangements for the test must be done by the applicants as well as provision of a special insurance policy. The driving licence is valid up to the age of 60, after which health certificates for fitness are needed.

International Driving Licence

Applications are done solely at the Police Headquarters at the Casernes police station in Port Louis. Documents to be produced include:

The local driving licence of the applicant

Two recent passport size photos

Air tickets

Passport

A fee of Rs800

Nonetheless, foreigners can drive in Mauritius with a valid driving licence from their respective countries once they have carried out some formalities at the police headquarters.

Oral Test aka Local Signs Test (Theory)

The audio visual test also known as the oral test is normally done in batches of 20 over 40 minutes. Candidates have to answer 40 multiple choice questions whereby only 6 mistakes are permissible for a pass and this is done in English/French over a computerised system. Candidates have to call beforehand to secure a place for the test. The test can also be taken in Creole and a police officer will read out the questions to the candidate.

Road Test aka Practical Driving Test

The test is assessed on the following criteria: starting off, changing gears, turning corners, stopping at various speeds, giving signals while driving, reverse, turning the vehicle around, stopping, holding and starting the vehicle on gradient, reading traffic lights, rules of the road, understanding traffic signals by drivers and police and mechanical knowledge.

On average, 20 lessons are required to pass the road test and each lesson lasts for 30mins and costs Rs300. Very often driving instructors demand a car insurance fee too which is around Rs1500. Note that if you fail, you will have to wait 2 months before you can resit the test.

Pass Rate Statistics

In 2013, 45,208 Mauritians took the Road Test and only 40% passed.

Just 15% passed first time round.

Motoring Updates

16 October 2014 - The Road Eye Project will launch where the Road Test will be recorded on camera. Should the candidate want to contest a failure, they will need to pay Rs100 within 28 days and a Senior Examiner will review the footage and make the final call. This can help reduce bribery.

01 November 2014 - The Practical Test is made up of 3 parts : The Road Test (where you're assessed on your driving skills), the Left Parking and the Left/Right Reverse. Prior to this date, you were able to retake only the part(s)in which you fail but now you will have to pass all 3 in one go. For example, if you fail Left Reverse, you will have to take all 3 again next time.

Hi, this is my 1st post here & i find this website very useful. I am Mauritian but my husband is Pakistani & we are both living in Qatar. He has both Pakistani & Qatari Driving License. Does that mean he can drive in Mauritius? And if he can, what are the formalities that he'll have to undergo? We are planning a 1 month visit to Mauritius soon.

Your husband can drive in Mauritius without any formalities. I hold a British driving licence and I've been stopped twice by the police for routine checks and never had any problems. Both Qatar and Pakistan have competent driving authorities and therefore he will not face any problems.

If you want peace of mind, you can drop into Casernes (Port-Louis Police Headquaters) and they will tell you the same thing.

Do not forget the driving licence when you come here and remember that we drive on the left hand side here.

hi sofia im vikash from mauritius and i saw your comments so was wondering how u went to quatar i think u are wrking there so me and my fiance also want to go to do wrk abroad any suggestion would be appreciated thanks for helping

Ok I don't know who to listen to anymore. I have a friend who's a Policeman working at Casernes & he says that my husband cant drive unless he has an International License. I told him about your encounters with the police & his explanation was that they just decided to let u go since even if they wanna fine u they know that it will be a lost case as by the time you have to go & pay the fine you will be out of the country. So am all confused now...... :-(

Different people will tell you different things. I've been to the Casernes 3 times and 3 different policemen told me 3 different things as well. I wanted to exchange my UK driving licence for a Mauritian one and they said I need to drive on my current licence for 3 years before I could exchange it. They've made an entry in their books so that they have a record of when I started driving in Mauritius.

As I've said before, I've been stopped for routine checks and so have my friends who hold foreign licences and we've never had any problems. On the Government website for Mauritius, it says "Any person holding a valid International Driving Permit or Driving Licence issued by a competent foreign authority shall not be required to pass a test". Here's a link to it : http://www.gov.mu/portal/site/police/men...

I can only tell from my own experience but at the end of the day it's upto you to decide what's best for you and your husband.

Hmm, thanks a lot Gices.. i think u're right, n in any case as my friend said as well by the time we ll have to go n pay the fine (in case he is right) we ll be out of Mauritius.. So i guess i'll take the chance....

I live in france i have no licence to drive a car. In 1977 I had a learner when I was coming to france and now i will return back to maurituis my paradise island, please tell me what can i must do to have a driving mauritius licence.

People who already have a licence from Europe can exchange it for a Mauritian one. Those who haven't need to pass the test over here. Funny you should ask but I saw a white person having driving lessons today. So it does happen but I understand where you're coming from and I've heard stories about getting licences through bribe but I don't know how much of that is true though.

Hello. There seems to be a problem during the online application of the mauritian provisional driving licence. The query relating to " Type or Class of Motor Vehicle Applicant wishes to be certified as competent to drive..." does not offer any valid option box. What must i do next for the online application? Please help.

being a minor of 17yrs old (nearly 18) when someone obtains a provisional driving licence, can he start to learn how to drive a car? But the stamps are put on the autocycle n motorcycle. and once he's 18 should he again undergo the oral test to obtain a provisional driving licence of a car?

hello i am from switzerland and coming soon for holidays. I already have my driving licence from my country and would like to know if i will need an international driving licence to be able to drive in Mauritius please??? Do you think i will need one?

my friend has done three times oral test through a computerised system and he failed.He has done only standard six and cant pass his exams as he cant understand the english well,does that mean he won't get his learner for motorcycle?

He will have to pass the oral exam to get the motorcycle learner. However the test can also be taken in creole, where a police officer will read out the questions & answers for him in creole and he just needs to select the correct answer.

hi i'm avinash, i forgot my username and password for the application of learners licences,and now i can't create another account because it tells me that the NIC number already taken,help me please, i don't know what should i do.

hi everybody, thanks so much that we have clever dodo..
last year i obtained my international licence in belarus which is valid for 10 years if i come to mauritius can i convert it to mauritian licence? if not how can i apply online for the mauritius licence?

being a minor of 17yrs old (nearly 18) when someone obtains a provisional driving licence, can he start to learn how to drive a car? But the stamps are put on the autocycle n motorcycle. and once he's 18 should he again undergo the oral test to obtain a provisional driving licence of a car?

I did my online learner application at the Mauritius post and when i tried to log in on the account created for the application, i was not able to access it and after a few trial the account was blocked and it said that t ineed to contact the administrator. what should i do?
is the application blocked too?
please help

Hello,
I recently learned that once u have your learner's permit, you'd need to pass your driving test within 6 months else u have to retake the oral exam! Now let us admit that u have a learner's permit for like years ago but never managed to take the test. Does that mean u have to take the oral test again or is the learner's permit valid 6 month from the day the new amendment was made official?